Mexican marines capture alleged drug gang leader

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Marines detained one of the leaders of the La Familia drug gang who controlled Mexico State, near Mexico City, a top security official said Wednesday.

National Security Commissioner Monte Alejandro Rubido said that Jose Maria Chavez was arrested in the central state of Guanajuato and that he headed the gang's activities in Mexico State.

The La Familia gang originated in the neighboring state of Michoacan, but by 2011 it had been displaced by the Knights Templar cartel. La Familia members then focused on Mexico State, where they have been implicated in killings and extortion.

Mexico State was the scene of a confrontation Monday in which 22 suspected members of the Guerreros Unidos gang were killed in a gunbattle with Mexican troops. One soldier was wounded.